Jefferson County Schools Personnel Director Arrested On Child Sex, Pornography Charges
The director of personnel for Jefferson County Schools was arrested this week in Tuscaloosa and charged with engaging in a sex act with a student and with possession of child pornography.
Authorities say Brett Kirkham, director of human resources for Jefferson County Schools, is charged with having a sex with a juvenile, during the years he worked as an educator in Hueytown. A complaint from the juvenile two weeks ago led authorities to confiscate Kirkham’s computers, and more charges could come, says Bill Veitch, District Attorney for the Bessemer Cutoff.
“The investigation is ongoing and we’ve got a long way to go in analyzing things that we found, things that we suspect and things that we’ve been told,” Veitch says.
Kirkham, who’s on paid leave with Jefferson County Schools, has been a teacher, assistant principal and principal in addition to his work as director of human resources.
Veitch says several images and illicit material were on Kirkham’s devices. Incidents alleged in Kirkham’s case may have started as early as middle school and continued in high school.
Florida’s 6-week abortion ban will have a ‘snowball effect’ on residents across the South
Abortion rights advocates say the ban will likely force many to travel farther for abortion care and endure pregnancy and childbirth against their will.
Attitudes among Alabama lawmakers softening on Medicaid expansion
Alabama is one of ten states which has not expanded Medicaid. Republican leaders have pushed back against the idea for years.
Birmingham is 3rd worst in the Southeast for ozone pollution, new report says
The American Lung Association's "State of the Air" report shows some metro areas in the Gulf States continue to have poor air quality.
Why haven’t Kansas and Alabama — among other holdouts — expanded access to Medicaid?
Only 10 states have not joined the federal program that expands Medicaid to people who are still in the "coverage gap" for health care
Once praised, settlement to help sickened BP oil spill workers leaves most with nearly nothing
Thousands of ordinary people who helped clean up after the 2010 BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico say they got sick. A court settlement was supposed to help compensate them, but it hasn’t turned out as expected.
Q&A: How harm reduction can help mitigate the opioid crisis
Maia Szalavitz discusses harm reduction's effectiveness against drug addiction, how punitive policies can hurt people who need pain medication and more.
